NHL Grind Down: Friday, February 10th
The RotoGrinders NHL Grind Down article will give you an in-depth analysis into the NHL schedule. This article will break down the numbers for every single game and give you analysis on which trends you can exploit. While matchups are a major factor in daily fantasy hockey there are plenty of other factors to consider such as injuries, salaries, and more.
The analysis should point you in the right direction, but it is still up to you to decipher the information and make your own selections. Hockey is an extremely high variance sport. The best choice is not always the right choice but following the trends will win you money over time.
Remember, these writeups are done prior to lineups being released, so make sure to check our Starting Lineups page to ensure the recommended options are playing.
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Chicago Blackhawks at Winnipeg Jets
| Chicago Blackhawks | Winnipeg Jets | ||||||||
 | Corey Crawford |  | Connor Hellebuyck | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 33-17-5 | 25-27-4 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.80 | 2.60 | 18.90% | 76.70% | Team Stats | 2.88 | 3.13 | 18.60% | 76.60% |
Chicago finishes up a five game road trip which has seen their only loss come at the hands of the San Jose Sharks back on New Year’s Eve. Jonathan Toews seem to have been reborn over the past few weeks as his seven points over the last six games now gives him 33 on the season. This makes a bit of sense however as his line of Nick Schmaltz and Richard Panik usually do not attract the most attention when the team is on the road. The line that does attract a lot of attention would be the top line of Patrick Kane, Artem Anisimov and Artemi Panarin. Kane leads the team with 38 assists and 53 points while Panarin’s 15 power play points is tied with the aforementioned Kane for the team lead. This line stays intact when Chicago goes on the power play and that may be a good thing tonight as Winnipeg has given up a power play goal in six of their last eight games. Marian Hossa skates on the third line with Marcus Kruger and should be considered as a one-off here as he leads the team with 19 goals while getting second unit power play minutes. Ryan Hartman skates on the fourth line and could be a punt play here as he has lit the lamp three times over the last six games. Defenseman Duncan Keith is the play here if you are playing it on the safer side tonight. Keith has scored seven of his 38 points over the last seven games while manning the point on the top power play unit. Brent Seabrook also gets the extra ice time with Keith as he has seen 12 of his 27 points come with the man advantage.
Just when you think you can start to trust the Winnipeg Jets, they go back into the tank. It’s not all bad however as they have managed to score two or more goals in each of their last 21 games, so obviously the team has its defensive problems which we really don’t care about unless you are taking the Winnipeg goaltender. The Jets have two lines that can score which usually has them in the game on most nights. Mark Scheifele centers one line with Blake Wheeler and Andrew Copp on the wings while Bryan Little centers Nikolaj Ehlers and Patrik Laine which serves as the other scoring line. Scheifele leads the team with 25 goals and 53 points while Wheeler’s seven points over the last six games has him third on the team with 46 points. Copp has been serviceable by collecting five points in the last eight games which would make this line a decent line for tournament play. Little has picked up the pace as well as he also has grabbed seven points in the last six games which gives him 29 points this season. Had Laine not missed eight games this season there is no doubt that he might be leading the team with his 23 goals but nonetheless the youngster does have 43 pints in the 48 games he has suited up for. Ehlers has been solid as well as he is second on the team with 47 points. Either line is fine to use tonight for your tournament contests. Defensemen Dustin Byfuglien and Jacob Trouba are the choice on the back line. Byfuglien is normally the safer play as his 34 points trumps Trouba’s output by 12 points which would make Trouba an option that may not have a lot of ownership tonight.
Elite Plays
CHI: Patrick Kane, Jonathan Toews
WIN: Mark Scheifele
Secondary Plays
CHI: Artemi Panarin, Artem Anisimov, Duncan Keith, Marian Hossa, Richard Panik, Brent Seabrook
WIN: Blake Wheeler, Patrik Laine, Nikolaj Ehlers, Bryan Little, Dustin Byfuglien
Tampa Bay Lightning at Minnesota Wild
| Tampa Bay Lightning | Minnesota Wild | ||||||||
 | Ben Bishop |  | Devan Dubnyk | ||||||
| Record | Record | ||||||||
| 24-24-6 | 35-12-6 | ||||||||
| Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% | Stats | GF/GP | GA/GP | PP% | PK% |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Team Stats | 2.70 | 2.87 | 21.40% | 80.20% | Team Stats | 3.34 | 2.32 | 20.30% | 82.10% |
The Tampa Bay Lightning are coming into this one tied for last place with Buffalo and Detroit with 54 points in the Eastern Conference. This may seem like bad news, which it is, but the good news is that they are only six points away from Boston whose 27-23-6 record has them at 60 points. With only four teams to choose from we have to look at a lot of angles to take down that GPP for the big money. Vladislav Namestnikov, Tyler Johnson and Nikita Kucherov will skate as the top line while Brian Boyle, Brayden Point and Jonathan Drouin will handle the second line duties. Kucherov seems to be the safest choice here as his 21 goals and 49 points leads the team so finding exposure to him is the key here. Minnesota is a tough defensive team but they have given up five goals in the last five games while killing a penalty so maybe going off course here is the way to go. I’m talking about pairing Kucherov with Drouin as although they skate on different lines they do join forces on Tampa’s top power play unit. Drouin has snared 15 of his 34 points when the Lightning had the man advantage so going this way seem to make a little sense. You could also use Johnson with Kucherov as they skate on the same line but my fear here is that they will get shut down at even strength here in Minnesota. The only other option could be Valtteri Filppula who skates on the third line as he has collected seven of his 32 points over the last 12 games. Victor Hedman is back on the top power play unit where he belongs and should be considered as a decent defensive play tonight. Anton Stralman is another option but he has found the score sheet just 14 times in 43 games.
Minnesota looks to win their 18th game in front of the home crowd tonight as they host the Tampa Bay Lightning. They have won seven of their last 10 games as the team has clearly become the surprise of the Western Conference this season as evidence by their 76 points that is second in the league. Eric Staal, Zach Parise and Alex Tuch comprise one of three lines that has the ability to put the puck in the net. The top line hasn’t been doing much of late but that is probably because five of their last seven games have been on the road. While Tuch has played just three games, both Parise and Staal have combined for just seven points in those seven games. Mikael Granlund leads the team with 33 assists and 48 points while skating alongside if Jason Zucker and Mikko Koivu. Granlund makes for a nice one-off here as he has tallied nine of those points over the last seven games but I wouldn’t blame you if you used a full line stack here tonight with only four teams in action. Nino Niederreiter has come out of nowhere to lead the team with 17 goals as he has a new center in Charlie Coyle with Jason Pominville on their wing. Pominville matches Granlund’s output over the last seven games with three goals and three assists making this line yet another trio for consideration tonight. Ryan Suter and Mathew Dumba take the points when the Wild draw a penalty. Minnesota hasn’t scored a power play goal in the last five games so it’s Suter who makes the safer play as he has found the score sheet 30 times so far this season.
GAME UPDATE
It looks like both teams have shuffled up their lines as Coyle is moved to the top knocking Parise back Pominville for the Wild while Tampa has moved Palat up with Kucheron and Namestnikov while Alex Killorn moves up with Point and Drouin in the absence of Tyler Johnson who is out with an undisclosed injury.
Elite Plays
TB: Nikita Kucherov
MIN: Mikael Granlund, Eric Staal
Secondary Plays
TB: Jonathan Drouin, Victor Hedman, Tyler Johnson, Brian Boyle, Brayden Point
MIN: Nino Niederreiter, Zach Parise, Jason Zucker, Mikko Koivu, Ryan Suter, Charlie Coyle